Orryn Emrys
Explorer
And this challenge, accessible in a way it never has been in previous rulesets, is one I think my group is ready for. Without any idea what 4E was going to be like, they developed a set of character concepts for our newest campaign that just walk right into this kind of group philosophy. They're characters are still very much individuals, but something about the backstory for the campaign (I'm converting War of the Burning Sky) captured their collective imagination in a way that forged individuals more than willing to learn to fight together toward a common cause. So I'm pretty excited about it, since I'm getting to see a 4th Edition launch that's heartily embraced by my drama-drenched method-actors.Wisdom Penalty said:I think Hong hit on the difference between 4e and previous versions of D&D (excepting, perhaps, 1e). It's this: 4e is all about optimizing the group, not optimizing the individual. Players need to get into a mindset of taking actions in combat that are most beneficial for the group, and not (necessarily) the "best" action they might take as an individual PC. Combat has become communism, in a way, and this philosophy seems to permeate through the equally-balanced classes and their associated powers.
I think they will... at least in the short term. What I'm concerned about is the possibility that it will all seem sort of old hat after a campaign or two. Particularly since I have a lot of players spread across several games every week. If Joe's mid-level rogue is going to be particularly similar to the one Bob played in the last game, will they really be enthused about it? They tend to look at characters more as people than a collection of statistics, so I might be selling them a bit short here... but it's hard not to get caught up in the rules when you're experimenting with something new and (so very) different.Wisdom Penalty said:Gone are the days wherein some classes would become non-viable in mid-high level adventures. Gone are the days wherein casters, or CODzilla, or whatever would take the spotlight encounter after encounter.
That, I think we'd agree, is Good. What remains to be seen is whether these equal-powered classes are different enough from their fellows, and different enough as they advance, to keep players interested in playing them.
Your mileage may vary...